Photo Credit: Citroen Racing The 2017 FIA World Rally Championship has lived up to the reputation it promised, with Kris Meeke becoming the third different driver in the third different car to win a rally this season by taking the win on Rally Mexico at the wheel of a Citroen C3 WRC. That means that despite the evident pace of the Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC, it is now the only current car not to have taken a WRC victory.
Was that the real story of the weekend? It certainly would've been, but for 30 seconds of madness to totally change the post-event interviews in what was one of the most dramatic finishes to a WRC event in memory. Meeke was just a minute away from victory when after leaping over the famous El Brinco jump, he attacked the fast right hander that follows the crest, only for his C3 to catch a bump in the middle of the corner and fly off into a field which was being used as a spectator car park. There were incredible scenes as Meeke and Nagle looked for a way out of the field which they did, and despite a front puncture caused by swiping a spectator's car they managed to win the rally by 13 seconds from Sebastien Ogier and Julien Ingrassia. "I'm a lucky, lucky boy" remarked Meeke to the live TV cameras, before later looking up to the sky and saying "thank you." It what was a bizarre ending to what was a flawless and much needed weekend and result for Meeke and the Citroen Racing team after the problems and scrutiny they faced after the opening two rounds. World Champion Sebastien Ogier continued his impressive start to the season with second place in the Americas. The Frenchman is continuing to adapt to the Fiesta RS WRC, but might be slightly disappointed to lose 10 seconds to Meeke over Saturday when road positions were equal, that gap being exaggerated by a costly spin for the Frenchman. Still, he regained the championship lead and three podiums from three starts isn't exactly bad-going. Thierry Neuville and Nicolas Gilsoul claimed Hyundai Motorsport's first podium of the season in a rather lonely third place. It wasn't third time lucky for Neuville but nor was it a case of bad things happening in threes, as the Belgian didn't throw away a winning position but nor was he really ever in such a position. His charge was hampered by overheating issues that plagued all three i20's on Friday, but these were much needed points for driver and team. Ott Tanak continued his fine start to the 2017 season with his first non-podium of the season in fourth overall. The result further outlines the Estonian's potential as a future WRC winner with consistency being added to his raw speed, and also cements M-Sport's position at the top of the manufacturers standings. Hayden Paddon and John Kennard would more than likely have finished third had they not lost a minute in the famous Guanajuato street stage on Friday night with engine woes, but the confidence and determination was clearly back on the Kiwi's preferred surface of gravel. Any title aspirations Paddon may have had pre-season look all but over, but he can still grab rally wins and play a crucial role in bringing the manufactures title to Hyundai's German base. Jari-Matti Latvala and Juho Hanninen brought their Toyota Yaris WRC's home in sixth and seventh places repsectively, a result which was the worst of Latvala's season but the best of Hanninen's, despite the experienced Finn feeling ill for the entirety of the weekend. For Latvala, who lost two minutes in the opening stage, the rally instantly became a test session for him and the new team, but he still holds second in the championship behind Ogier. Nobody could have expected or predicted that after three rallies. Dani Sordo got a podium stripped off of him in Mexico last year, and he was robbed of another strong finish due to Hyundai's engine problems on Friday this year. He did however get a 10 minute penalty overturned for upsetting the schedule of Friday night's super special stages, with eighth place the reward for his efforts. However, the Spaniard was a man possessed on Saturday morning, taking out his anger (on the penalty that at this point was still lingering over him) on the stages setting two fastest times. If only we could see this raw speed on a more consistent basis, as it clearly is still there. Elfyn Evans and Daniel Barritt endured another trying rally in Mexico after issues that have plagued them in both Monte-Carlo and Sweden. This time, the engine in the DMACK Fiesta had to be changed between shakedown and the rally's first test in Mexico City, meaning he was five minutes down before he had even started. However, he still set three fastest stage times over the weekend, and with Corsica up next (the rally he has previously done best on) the future looks rosy if all stays well for the young Welshman. Stephane Lefebvre finished down in 15th after a learning weekend in Citroen's second C3. A rather innocuous error led to the Frenchman getting stuck in a bank and retiring for the day on leg 3. WRC2 leaders Pontus Tidemand and Eric Camilli finished tenth and eleventh for Skoda Motorsport and M-Sport. The Swedish and French stars had the best battle of the weekend, trading stage wins to be just seconds apart heading into Sunday. However, Camilli hadn't been able to recce Sunday's stages which gave Tidemand the edge, stretching the gap out to 42 seconds by the end to sit top of the championship with two wins from two starts. So, what can we take from Rally Mexico? Well, it turns out the 'luck of the Irish' is certainly a statement that holds true, and this year's WRC is more exciting and fascinating than we could have hoped for. However, it is early days I know, but I still don't see anybody taking Sebastien Ogier's mantle from him. Now that the cars are equal, he is right at the sharp end but is most definitely not alone there, to an extent that he probably won't be considered the favourite on his home event next month. But Ogier has four titles under his belt and therefore knows what he's doing. Raw speed needs to be held back at times in favour of consistent and strong finishes as that's how championships are won. There is no finer example to the opposite effect of this than Thierry Neuville's 2017 campaign...
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January 2018
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